Braves set MLB record in absolute dismantling of Pirates pitching
By John Buhler
The Atlanta Braves beat the Pittsburgh Pirates so badly that they set an MLB record.
When the Atlanta Braves destroyed the Pittsburgh Pirates 20-1 on Friday night, they became a record-setting team in the process.
Atlanta became the first team in MLB history to hit over seven home runs in a game and two of those long balls being grand slams. Ronald Acuña Jr. and Ehire Adrianza connected on the two grand slams. Austin Riley had a pair of solo shots. Ozzie Albies, Marcell Ozuna and Dansby Swanson all had one-run homers apiece. They managed to score seven more runs besides this!
Hopefully, the Braves saved some runs for the final two games of their home series vs. Pittsburgh.
Atlanta Braves dug the long ball in their record-setting night vs. the Pirates
The Braves’ first two games of the home series vs. Pittsburgh could not have gone over differently. Atlanta lost the opener 6-4 because the bullpen went out there and stunk like it has been prone to do. Making sure they were not going to be an issue on Friday night, the offense plated 20 runs to ensure themselves they were not going to embarrass the home crowd again.
While the Braves remain a tad below .500 in the latter part of May, the good news is the starting rotation seems to be improving in recent weeks. We know what the offense is capable of. Atlanta plays great defense and can make some noise on the base paths. Unfortunately, this team will only go as far as its Achilles heel. This bullpen cannot play like this if they want to play in October.
Atlanta proved once again it can be an offensive juggernaut when the other team does not have it.